


Swapping Drinks

by ExoRipper



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, One Piece
Genre: Advice, Complete, Drinking, Friendship, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-06
Updated: 2020-09-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:26:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26319400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExoRipper/pseuds/ExoRipper
Summary: Edward Newgate, also known as Whitebeard, didn't expect to get into Heaven when he died. He also didn't expect to befriend someone like Iroh, but the afterlife is strange like that.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 25





	Swapping Drinks

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by Jeremy Geller in a youtube comment section. He wrote a short dialogue exchange between Whitebeard and Iroh. I tried to keep as much of the dialogue he wrote as possible, but I did add my own spin to it :)
> 
> The title was suggested by another user named Tyler. Props to the two of them for letting me use their ideas.

When he died, Edward Newgate didn't expect to see the pearly gates of Heaven. He wasn't a bad person, or at least he liked to believe so. But he had been a pirate, with all of the strings that came attached. The world had feared him, the World Government had hated him and hunted him relentlessly, so when his deeds were weighed on the cosmic scale, he didn't expect them to learn to the right.

But it had. Whatever cosmic force, or God, or supreme judge of right and wrong was out there, it had deconstructed his life, took a close look at everything, and deemed him worthy. The pearly gates opened for him that day, and he was greeted into Heaven as a hero.

Heaven, he found out, was much bigger than he'd anticipated. So big, in fact, that he had trouble finding anyone from his world. Yes, _his_ world, because every soul from every world arrived in the same Heaven. Mind blowing realizations that other worlds exist aside, Newgate enjoyed it in Heaven.

Over time, he met many strong people. Some, like Pixis, were only strong in the context of their own world. Others, like Roshi or Genryuusai, were strong p _eriod,_ by the standards of any world Newgate could imagine. Because Newgate could destroy an entire island in his youth, but in Heaven he met people that could casually turn planets into space dust.

By the time he met Hiruzen and Jiraiya, Newgate came to a realization: whatever portion of Heaven he now called home was shared with old warriors like himself. Men of immense power, influence, and wisdom. And he enjoyed befriending each and every one of them, though he enjoyed the company of some more than others.

Such was the case for Iroh. _The Dragon of the West_ was an interesting man, mellow and caring to the core but with a fire behind his eyes like no other. A man of much wisdom, a man of many regrets, but a man at peace with himself and the world he'd left behind.

Iroh also made a tea worth dying for. Newgate was never about tea, he much preferred his alcoholic beverages, but he came to yearn for its taste so long as he was by Iroh's side. And sure, maybe Iroh's stories and advice played a role in that, the way he knew what to say to soothe Newgate's aching soul. He came to look forward to their tea time and swapping of stories, both of which they had plenty of in the last few months since Newgate arrived.

"Newgate, my friend," Iroh greeted from the door of his home. "Come, the water's almost boiling."

Newgate followed Iroh inside, bending his back to fit through the door. Iroh's home wasn't anything big or special, just a one person house with a style that reminded Newgate of Wano. But it was spotless and well maintained, a testament to Iroh's love and diligence for everything in his life.

"Sit, I'll bring everything and join you," Iroh said, showing Newgate to the small tea table on the back porch. A table so small, in fact, that Newgate couldn't get his knees below it. "I know I promised I'd find a chair to your size," Iroh said from somewhere in another room, "and I will. But I haven't found one yet."

Newgate smiled and sat on the floor next to the table, just like usual. Heaven really wasn't built for someone like him, which led to a lot of daily struggles, but he couldn't imagine life without _any_ conflicts. Iroh returned with a tray in his hands, upon which he carried everything they'd need. A teapot of boiling water, cups so tiny that Newgate held his pinched between two fingers, and a jar of honey to serve as their sweetener.

Iroh brewed the tea and poured each of them a cup, all the while making small talk about this or that. Mostly questions about how Newgate's days had been lately, if he'd met anyone from his world, the usual. Newgate answered, but his mind trailed off on the thoughts that had been burdening him for the past week or so. Thoughts about his crew, about his _sons,_ and of what came of them in his absence.

As Iroh finished pouring his tea and sat at the table, his questions shifted to a story. One about tea, fittingly. And a funny story at that, which made Newgate realize that Iroh picked up on his worries and tried his best to cheer him up.

"So there I was," Iroh recounted. "Covered from head to toe in blotches that I got from drinking tea I made from a white jade bush. I have to…"

"What's a white jade bush?" Newgate asked, interrupting Iroh's story.

"Oh, I guess you don't have those in your world," Iroh answered, rubbing the back of his head. "It's a bush that looks like _another_ bush called the white dragon bush. That one makes for some delectable tea, but I mixed them up."

"That doesn't sound like a mistake you'd make," Newgate said with a smile.

"On any other day, I wouldn't have," Iroh admitted. "Anyway. I found a branch of what I thought were pakui berries nearby, but they could've been maka'ole berries that cause blindness. They look _very_ similar. My nephew stopped me from taking those, even though they were the antidote to the white jade poison."

Hearing that, Newgate broke out into laughter, his heartache forgotten for the moment.

"And how'd you survive then?" He asked.

"Oh, we reached a town and got a herbal paste that also cured white jade rashes."

They laughed for a while longer while Iroh finished recounting the story. Newgate sipped from the tea slowly, but his attention soon faltered again.

"Do you have something on your mind, Newgate?" Iroh asked. "You're more silent than usual."

Newgate sighed deeply. His tense shoulders slouched, and his whole body unwinded.

"I'm worried for my sons," he admitted. "Some of them have gotten themselves in quite a mess."

"And let me guess," Iroh added, "it's eating you up inside that you can't be there for them."

"Of course," Newgate said, matter of factly. "What father _wouldn't_ want to be there for his sons?"

"I understand," Iroh said with compassion, his sight sinking into his cup. His stories about his own son came to Newgate's mind.

"During the Marineford war, I was there to fight alongside them. And it pains me that I _lost_ some of them, but I made sure most of them got out," Newgate lamented, his smile gone and replaced by a pained expression. "But now they've gotten themselves in this payback war, and I'm worried that more and more of them will be coming to join me far too soon."

Iroh hummed with understanding, and rubbed his chin as he searched for his words.

"Zuko, my nephew," Iroh said after a while, talking slowly. "I never stopped worrying for him, even after he became the Fire Lord and a father himself. I was proud of him, but worried still. You should also be proud of your sons. Even with you no longer by their side to guide them, they still treat each other like brothers. Your family lives on."

Newgate sipped his tea, mulling over Iroh's words. His advice was as solid as always, and Newgate was grateful for it.

"You're right," he admitted to Iroh. "And besides, my sons would just laugh if they saw their old man getting worried like this."

Iroh let out a chuckle, and Newgate followed his lead. His worries melted away, a smile taking their place instead.

"I do believe it's time for one of _your_ tales now, my friend," Iroh said.

Newgate reached into a pocket, and pulled out a bottle of sake along with two cups. Small things for a man like him, sure, but they were of average size. He put the cups on the table and filled them up, pushing one over to Iroh's side.

"Okay, but we'll have to drink something a bit stronger for this tale," Newgate said with excitement and anticipation.

"I still prefer tea," Iroh said, sipping from his cup. "But I have to admit, this sake that you bring is quite good."

"This one was made by people from a world called Tokyo," Newgate boasted. "Or was Tokyo a city? I can't remember," he said, breaking into a sheepish smile. "Anyway, some of the best makers of sake in Heaven. I searched for it for a long time."

"Can't say I've heard of it," Iroh said. "But I'll take your word for it, you _do_ know your sake." Iroh drank the rest of it, and shook the cup in Newgate's direction. "So, this tale you wanted to tell me," he said after he received his refill.

"It's a story that an old friend told me," Newgate began recounting. "See, back in my world, you would occasionally meet people with the middle initial of D."

"D, huh?" Iroh asked with intrigue. "What does it stand for?"

"It's a story from a long time ago…"


End file.
